


Paging Dr. Katsuki

by katsudon_s



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hospital, Doctor AU, M/M, Romantic Comedy, and viktor is smitten and silly, i'll add more character tags as they come along, it's ok i don't know how old anybody is either, wherein yuuri is just a humble doctor
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-13
Updated: 2017-04-22
Packaged: 2018-10-04 04:27:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10268228
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katsudon_s/pseuds/katsudon_s
Summary: Night shifts are never particularly fun for Yuuri, but a certain patient might be able to change that.





	1. Chapter 1

"New ambulance in hallway!"

Yuuri's head perks up. It has been so long, dull, and uneventful a graveyard shift that seeing _any_ patient would bring him reprieve from death by sheer boredom. Picking up Phichit's shift was not one of his better ideas, though it did come with a pretty sweet coupon book from the King of Hamsters himself. Yuuri just couldn't pass up free food and gas, even if it meant he was stuck working on this fine Friday night while Phichit was probably out taking tequila shots out of strangers' belly buttons.

Yuuri shakes his head. _Phichit would know better. That's unsanitary._

Once the paramedics have completely wheeled in the stretcher, Yuuri stands up, smooths down his scrubs, and grabs a pen and folded piece of paper before heading over.

"Chris!" he says, greeting the one paramedic he recognizes--then adding, somewhat drolly, "I've never been this excited to see you." Outside of work, meaning at the bars or the club or the bowling alley, Chris was pretty... well... sexually outspoken. Yuuri, on the other hand, was not--so he always kept a modest distance. Force of habit, really, since _Work_ Chris was one of the most professional--and experienced--medics in the region. Chris reaches out his hand, and Yuuri meets it halfway with his own.

"Hey, Yuuri! I'm guessing it's been a long night for you..."

"Five hours in and I've seen three patients." He holds up the number with his right hand to emphasize that he hasn't even seen _five fingers' worth of patients in the same number of hours._ "I'm hoping to at least match that in my second half."

"That's rough," Chris says, grimacing. "We're in the same boat, but _this_ was enough entertainment for the night." Yuuri furrows his brow in amusement, and Chris continues. "I'll give you the lowdown on this guy. Twenty-seven-year old male, suffered a fall while ice skating and may have sprained his right arm _and_ leg. We found him out on the ice. He couldn't even get out of the rink." Chris pauses for a few seconds. "You know, they don't teach you how to ice skate in paramedic school. They really should. You don't want to know what we had to go through to get him off of there." Yuuri starts, but Chris interrupts-- "Yes, it did involve a Zamboni. And no, it did not work." The entire left side of his uniform is wet, and he wipes some residual ice off his leg.

Yuuri stares at him, perplexed, but decides it best not to ask. "Hold on, it's 3 a.m.! What kind of rink is open at this hour?"

"Well... the kind that's on your own property, Doc." Chris turns to go, patting Yuuri on the shoulder. "Anyway, he's alert and oriented, except we gave him some morphine and he's a little loopy. But he can tell you the rest."

Yuuri blinks a few times. Then again, he asked for it--he wanted an interesting night, didn't he?

He walks over to the patient chatting with the registrar, who looks uncharacteristically starstruck. When she sees the doctor, she moves aside, revealing the face of the patient to Yuuri.

Yuuri feels his heart skip a beat.

"Hellooo, Doctor! I'm Viktor Nikiforov!"

\--------------------------

"H-hi, Viktor. I'm Dr. Katsuki," Yuuri mostly gets out. He reaches his right hand out for a handshake, only to realize that Viktor's right arm is laying limp at his side. Instead, Viktor reaches out his left hand-- _the arm that actually works, Katsuki, you idiot_ \--and Yuuri turns his right hand over, offering something of an upside down handshake.

_This will do._

Now, Yuuri is an excellent doctor. He's professional, he follows up with his patients within 24 hours, _he knows how to give a damn good proper handshake_ \--but not tonight. Not when the patient is Viktor fucking Nikiforov, or, y'know, only Yuuri's childhood idol. Because before he was Dr. Katsuki, he was Skater Katsuki. You don't just _not_ be inspired to become a professional skater during the Viktor Nikiforov Golden Era. You just don't.

Yuuri had abandoned the fantasy of competitive skating long ago, but his devotion to figure skating itself was a stoic presence even throughout medical school--likewise, his devotion to the patient sitting right in front of him. Phichit is the only one who knows about Viktor Nikiforov's #1 Fan, and Yuuri spares a mental _thank you_ to the powers that be that Phichit isn't working tonight, too.

Yuuri may or may not have had posters of Mr. Nikiforov all over his bedroom walls as a child. And teenager. And undergrad student.

And yes, even Yuuri Katsuki, MD showed his admiration for Viktor in his own sweet, subtle way.

He swiftly switches out his custom-made Viktor-and-Makkachin chibi pen for a normal, blue Zebra Z-Grip.

(It's like he's been carrying the extra pen _precisely_ for this moment.)

"Now tell me what happened tonight, Viktor."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kudos and comments appreciated, as always :) thanks for reading my silly idea!
> 
> find me on tumblr [here](http://katsudon-s.tumblr.com/)!


	2. Chapter 2

As much as Viktor hates hospitals, he can't help but thank his lucky stars tonight.

Because this doctor is _cute_.

His black hair--of which the longer locks are messily pulled back into a short ponytail--is a little disheveled, eyes weary under his blue-rimmed clubmaster glasses--it's all forgiven by the ungodly hour, a factor that's Viktor's fault, anyway. As far as looks go, Viktor would normally consider him unremarkable. But there's a gracefulness about him, a calmness, a mysteriousness that edges unusually close to familiarity--or maybe it's just the morphine kicking in. Whatever it is, seeing this doctor makes Viktor a little less uncomfortable in the ambulance stretcher. He hovers slightly over Viktor as he asks him to recount the night.

"Well, Doctor, I was ice skating when I got distracted and landed a jump wrong. So I fell, and I tried to break the fall with my right arm--which obviously didn't work."

The doctor laughs a little--and it's cute, and Viktor wants him to laugh more, but instead he just continues along with the questions. "Did you hit your head when you fell?"

"I don't think so..."

"Feeling dizzy at all? Light-headed? Having trouble with your vision?"

Viktor shakes his head. "Just the pain in my wrist. And my ankle. And my side... and my shoulder..."

The doctor nods. "I'll order some x-rays so we can make sure nothing's broken. I'm just going to need to do a quick physical exam, OK?" He begins to remove the thin blanket provided by the medics from Viktor's lap.

Viktor makes an _okay_ sound. "Remind me of your name, Doctor?"

"Dr. Katsuki," he replies. "Or you can call me Yuuri. I don't mind people dropping the formality."

"Yuu-ri," Viktor sounds out, the second syllable rolling off his tongue. "That's a beautiful name."

He swears he sees Yuuri's ears go pink. But the young doctor doesn't respond, only goes on with the rest of the exam. Viktor gasps when Yuuri takes his right wrist with a skilled gentleness, almost painlessly.

"T-This is the wrist you fell on, correct?" Yuuri asks. Viktor nods, amused. This doctor really _is_ cute. So cute he's on another plane of existence. He holds Viktor's wrist in place for several moments, staring intently, likely to assess the swelling.

 _Does he really need to stare at it that long?_ Viktor wonders. But he wouldn't know. He isn't a doctor.

"OK," Yuuri finally says, snapping out of his concentration. "Tell me if this hurts..."

Yuuri begins pressing gently on different parts of Viktor's wrist with his two fingers. Once Viktor finally winces in pain, Yuuri retreats in response, stammering "Ack! Sorry! Sorry!" while waving his hands around.

Now he's _really_ blushing, and Viktor offers a forgiving smile. "It's alright, you need to assess me, right? Besides, I would be much worse without the painkillers."

Yuuri nods in understanding, bringing the back of his hand up to cool his face. "I apologize for that, Viktor," he says, moving to place a palm on Viktor's right shoulder, "I'm not normally this--"

" _Aa-ah!_ My shoulder--"

"Oh my god! Sorry! Sorry!"

\--------------------------

Yuuri heads back to his computer chair and slumps down. He was informed that a room had been readied for the ER's new Russian resident, cutting the physical exam short for the time being--and to Yuuri's relief.

He hadn't expected to ever see Viktor Nikiforov that close in person. Or to touch Viktor Nikiforov's wrist. Or to hear Viktor Nikiforov say his name. And certainly not all three in the span of four minutes--at least not unless he saw Viktor in a crowd and shamelessly begged for his autograph. But in that case, he would be able to relish the embarrassment without ever having to _see_ Viktor again.

Not in this case.

He should be more excited. Not that he's fantasized about this moment before or anything. But he's in no shape to be able to deal with Viktor professionally, especially not in the middle of a shift where he has to suppress a yawn every ten minutes. Though he _is_ amazed at and slightly proud of himself for not being reduced to a sputtering, stammering mess when he talked to Viktor for the first time.

Well, not a complete mess, at least.

He debates whether or not to act on his urge to pull out his phone and text Phichit about what just happened. Would that technically be a HIPAA violation? Technically it would be--if he mentioned Viktor's name.

That was something he could work around.

He orders a few x-rays and then takes out his phone.

Sent 03:41  
**Phichit are you alive**

 _Oh god, is telling Phichit really a good idea?_ He wrestles with the guilt of hiding such prominent information from his best friend. He's desperately searching for a sign that would help him decide when his phone buzzes.

King of Hamsters 03:43  
**i'm living the dream my friend**

He asked for a sign, didn't he?

Sent 03:43  
**Ok so I need your help  
** **I have this patient coming in who fell while ice skating  
** **At his own ice rink  
** **And I'm doing such a terrible job with him lmao I keep stuttering and blushing and I am SO not calm  
**He's Russian btw****

"Dr. Katsuki, Dr. Chulanont on your line!"

 _That fast?_ Yuuri stares incredulously at the blinking light on his desk phone before picking it up. Before he can catch a breath, Phichit speaks first.

"Tell him you love him."

Yuuri pinches the bridge of his nose. "Don't you think the hospital monitors these calls?"

"Yuuri, you have loved him all your life. Tell him you love him."

"You could have called my cell phone for this."

"If I call your hospital line, it makes _you_ look like you're doing work stuff." Yuuri imagines Phichit bringing a finger to his temple in an attempt to compensate for his failed logic. "I'm looking out for you." 

"How are you even calling my line? Aren't you at the club?"

"Have you not been checking Instagram? I'm at home. It's movie night with my boys."

Yuuri knows he means his hamsters, so he doesn't say anything else. _Living the dream, alright._ "Phichiiiiit," he says instead, helplessly. "What do I doooo?"

"You do what any good doctor would do and you treat him."

"But I can barely examine him like a normal person. I held his wrist for _two minutes."_

"Stop being weird! He's like any other celebrity we've gotten. Or--let me rephrase that--any other _patient_ we've gotten. Just don't be weird about it if you can help it. If you keep him there long enough you can get his number when your shift is done."

"What?!"

"Oh! Or you could look at his file--"

_"Phichit!"_

"Aren't you glad you took my shift? Now go seduce him, Doctor!"

 _Christ,_ Yuuri thinks as he hangs up. _Am I supposed to put that in the medical chart?_

He stands up, fighting the sleepiness that's beginning to wash over him. He should probably finish that physical exam...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> surprise viktor POV! and yes, yuuri has long hair in this because i couldn't resist. he's the cutest doctor west of the mississippi.
> 
> and i'm sure everyone who works in the ER knows about yuuri and phichit's unprofessionalism so they don't even question it :'D
> 
> thanks everyone for the kudos, bookmarks, and comments so far!


	3. Chapter 3

"Are all of the doctors here as cute as that?!"

Chris turns to face Viktor and cocks an eyebrow, unable to hide the amusement from his face. They're in Viktor's hospital room now, and far out of earshot of anyone in the doctors' hub. _"Ooooh._ You talking about Dr. Katsuki?"

Viktor nods enthusiastically as Chris and the other emergency personnel help him into the hospital bed. "Yes!" he exclaims resolutely. "Don't you think so?"

Chris gives him a knowing smile. "You know, I don't disagree with you. It's hard to find a cute, young male doctor in a sea of all these old dudes. And if they are cute, they're married with children. Yuuri's probably the most eligible bachelor in this entire damn hospital." He strokes his chin pensively. "Handsome and sexy with a medical degree. That's _so_ unfair. And you should see the volunteers who are here when he's working. Suddenly everybody wants to become a doctor." Then, Chris leans in with a mischievous look. "Oh, and when he's drunk... Oh, Viktor, If I weren't a married man--"

"I'm in love with him."

Chris blinks. "What?"

"That man. I want to marry him."

"This _has_ to be the meds," Chris laughs, trailing behind the rest of the medic team as they wheel the ambulance's stretcher out of Viktor's room. "Enjoy your stay, Viktor," he adds with a wink.

\-----------------------------

"Sorry about the wait, Mr. Nikiforov!"

Yuuri pulls the curtain closed behind him as he greets the other man. Rooms in the ER weren't exactly private--and they were ridiculously small. Save for a vitals monitor, trash bin, and organizer filled with medical supplies, there's nothing in the room but Viktor's bed and a small stool right next to it.

Viktor looks up from his phone, smiling cheerfully. "No worries, Doctor!"

At the sight of Viktor, Yuuri steadies himself. It's still a little jarring to see Viktor _right in front of him._ He tries to remember Phichit's advice on being normal. "You're awfully cheerful for someone who's in the ER at this hour," he laughs, folding his hands in front of himself.

Viktor offers him a warm smile. "Something about tonight just... makes me feel right at home."

"We do have a wonderful hospital staff you can thank for that."

Viktor just keeps staring at him, smiling, and Yuuri can't help but stare back.

There's something about Viktor that makes him a _lot_ less intimidating the more time Yuuri spends around him--he just can't quite figure out what it is.

 _You're staring too long, Katsuki,_ he thinks to himself. _Say something normal!_

"S-so you uh... you brought your phone, huh?"

Yuuri chastises himself internally. _Of course he brought his phone, you dolt. It's the 21st century. And I meant_ doctor _normal, not whatever-the-hell-that-was normal._

Viktor doesn't seem to notice. "I was at least _this_ prepared," he laughs helplessly. "Didn't bring a toothbrush, didn't bring a book... It's the only thing I had on me besides my wallet _and_ it's dying."

"Oh!" Yuuri starts, reaching into his pocket. "I have a charger," he says as he pulls out a lightning cable and brick.

"That works! I have an iPhone."

Yuuri already knew that.

He walks over to Viktor--the left side this time, to avoid inflicting anymore pain--and plugs the charger into the outlet before handing him the cord. Viktor reaches out to grab it and their fingers brush--a little too strongly for Yuuri to believe it was an accident--and Yuuri lets out a gasp unintentionally, feeling the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. Viktor stares at him, looking almost expectant.

_Surely that wasn't an accident._

After a couple of seconds, Yuuri clears his throat. "Anyway," he starts, "I just came in to um... finish examining you."

"Right." Viktor blinks. "Right."

At that moment, a young man with blonde hair dashes into the room, wielding a clipboard and pen.

"I told you to tell me when you're going to see a patient!" he groans.

Yuuri does a double take. He and Yurio have seen so few patients tonight that honestly, Yuuri forgot he existed for a minute. Which, as grateful as he is for the volatile child, would've been okay in this particular scenario. "Oh, right. Sorry, Yurio--Viktor, this is my scribe, Yurio. He'll be taking notes on the exam for my reference." Yurio hides shyly behind the young doctor, peeking out at Viktor with a childish mug.

"It's Yuri, not Yurio!"

"Nice to meet you, Yurio," Viktor offers, not taking his eyes off of Yuuri.

Yurio just grunts.

"Okay," Yuuri says to himself. He removes the stethoscope from around his neck and puts on the eartips. "Just breathe normally for me," he says to Viktor.

He steadies himself by placing his free hand on Viktor's good shoulder. When he places the drum of the stethoscope over Viktor's heart, he's surprised to find that it's racing.

"He's mildly tachycardic," he notes to Yurio.

"Gross," Yurio mutters.

Yuuri shoots him a look as he continues examining Viktor. "Don't mind him," he says to Viktor lightheartedly. "He gets cranky when he works the night shift."

Steam blows out of Yurio's ears as he scribbles furiously on his clipboard, following Yuuri's subsequent dictations.

"Am I going to be okay, Doctor?" Viktor asks, his voice small as Yuuri assesses the bruising in his ankle.

Yuuri looks up at him from the foot of the hospital bed. "It looks like a sprain to me, but we'll scan everything to be sure."

He gives Viktor a reassuring smile, which Viktor returns. "Thank you _so_ much, Doctor," Viktor says gratefully. "My career depends on this. You're a lifesaver."

"I'm out of here," Yurio says, taking the last of his notes. "You are _so_ dramatic."

When he disappears behind the curtain, Yuuri laughs. "I think he likes you."

Viktor gives him a disbelieving look. "I'll take your word for it."

The conversation stills. Yuuri bounces awkwardly on the balls of his feet.

"Well-- if you need anyth--" he finally says, as Viktor starts, "Actually, Doctor--"

Yuuri blinks. "Yes?"

"Maybe I _did_ hit my head when I fell. I'm not sure. Can you check for me?"

"Oh. Um, well the EMS said you weren't exhibiting any signs of--"

"Just to be sure?" Viktor asks. He has that expectant look on his face again, Yuuri notices.

"I-- I guess it wouldn't hurt to check. Right?"

"I mean, I don't think so, but you're the doctor here."

True. If the EMS missed anything, it would be Yuuri to get in trouble for negligence. But he can't help but wonder if Viktor's pulling his leg.

Can't help but wonder if Viktor just doesn't want him to leave, he thinks as he tells Viktor to let his gaze follow Yuuri's finger, "Up, now down, now right, now left--good."

Can't help but wonder if Viktor maybe finds him attractive, _but there's no way,_ he thinks, carefully raising Viktor's arms so as to not cause any pain, before telling him, "Now close your eyes, but keep them up--good."

 _But even if he_ did _find me attractive,_ Yuuri continues to wonder, shining the bright light into Viktor's eyes and watching his pupils constrict-- _they're so blue and so beautiful holy shit--anyway, even if he did, wouldn't this be, like, against some kind of rules somewhere?_

He makes a mental note to ask Phichit about that.

This isn't something new for Yuuri to deal with. Patients have flirted with him many times, only for him to be completely oblivious to their advances. He only cared about one thing in life--his reputation as a doctor--so it wasn't hard for him to stay within patient-doctor boundaries.

But this is different--this patient is different--because Yuuri is head-over-heels attracted to him.

"So, everything is okay, Doctor?" Viktor asks, his blue eyes glistening against the fluorescent lights as they catch Yuuri's gaze.

"You're perfect," Yuuri replies, a little too breathlessly. He clears his throat. "Perfect," he repeats in his normal voice, "the exam is perfect. Besides the injuries, I mean. Oh--and your head--you're fine--it's-- it's fine."

He stumbles out of the room, muttering about the x-rays, mentally cursing himself for being so embarrassing--and doesn't see Viktor grinning like an idiot behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the update delay! i had exams these past two weeks. finishing this chapter was the perfect coping mechanism :')
> 
> i really wanted to include yurio, so i made him a scribe! scribes usually work in the ER alongside doctors, documenting anything pertinent to the patient's present illness as well as any of the doctors' findings, then compiling everything in the patient's official medical chart. they cut down a crap ton of the charting doctors usually have to do, which is why yuuri is so grateful for him haha.
> 
> also tachycardic is just the medical term for fast heart rate. we all know yuuri makes viktor's heart go dokidoki ;D
> 
> thanks again to everyone who's been bookmarking, commenting, and giving kudos! i'm glad you all enjoy this silly au ^^
> 
> if you haven't already, find me on [tumblr](http://katsudon-s.tumblr.com/) where i like to talk unnecessarily in my tags


	4. Chapter 4

"He totally likes you!"

"Yurio, I'm trying to give you information for the medical chart--"

Yurio throws his hands into the air and presses a palm to his forehead, wincing. "Considering you're a doctor, I didn't think you'd be this dense."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Yuuri shoots him an annoyed look.

"He was _flirting_ with you in there. Couldn't you see how he was looking at you? And he said 'Maybe I _did_ hit my head' right before you were about to leave? He obviously didn't want you to leave the room."

"I guess that's true..."

"And he sure as hell didn't want _me_ in there with you two."

"Ehh..." Yuuri says, his voice on the edge of skepticism and agreement, his eyes shifting towards the ceiling as he half-nods.

"Come on, Katsudon!" Yurio urges, using the affectionate nickname derived from the similarity of Yuuri's last name to his favorite meal. "Are you playing dumb? You have to be playing dumb. Even an idiot could tell!"

"Well, I suppose if _you_ noticed..."

"Hey--!"

Yuuri snickers to himself as Yurio bashes at his keyboard furiously. He slumps back down in his computer chair, nearly falling asleep when he remembers he should probably text Phichit about what just happened.

Sent 04:01  
**Hey, are you still up?**

Phichit 04:01  
**DID YOU GET HIS NUMBER YET**

Sent 04:01  
**Jesus**  
**No I didn't**  
**I just finished his exam**  
**I think he was flirting with me??**

The red light on Yuuri's desk phone starts blinking almost immediately. "Dr. Katsuki," the clerk's exasperated voice follows, "you have Dr. Chulanont on your line."

Yuuri sighs, thanking the clerk before begrudgingly answering the phone. "I said _not here,_ Phichit."

"Tell. Me. Everything."

"There really isn't much to tell," Yuuri says, then leans in, "but he's acting kind of weird."

"Weird?"

"Yeah. Like, I lent him my phone charger and-- you know that thing people do when they want to touch you and they intentionally brush up on you?"

"Hold on, you lent him your charger? You two are practically married."

_"Phichit."_

"Sorry, sorry. Continue."

"Okay, anyway-- and then _right_ before I left, he _made_ me do a neuro test on him, even though he said he was fine earlier. And he literally would not stop staring at me. Phichit, his _eyes"_ \--Yuuri leans into the phone, speaking in harsh whispers-- _holy shit,_ dude. They're beautiful."

Phichit laughs on the other end of the line. "Yuuri, you need to ask him out."

"Why would that be a good idea?!"

"Because," Phichit begins, "that man's test results came back..."

Yuuri groans.

"...and he is _positive_ -ly crushing on you."

Yuuri just grunts.

"We fear it might be terminal."

"Oh my god. You are seriously so lame."

"Yuuri, this man tested positive for every symptom of acute Crush on Yuuri Syndrome in the book! The not-so-subtle brushing of the hand! And the _oh,_ let me just bide my time to ask him out by making him stay in the exam room with me! And the gratuitous eye contact!"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Yuuri retorts.

"Yuuri, he's literally doing what every man and woman with a functioning set of eyes does whenever they interact with you. Are you really this oblivious? This whole time I thought you were just subtly rejecting everyone. You really _are_ a tough catch."

"I'm hanging up."

"Ask him out, chicken!"

"Phichit, do I need to remind you that we're doctors? Actual practicing, liable doctors? I didn't get over my fear of blood just to have the AMA excommunicate me for hitting on a patient."

"Listen to me, Katsuki. You're never gonna have this opportunity again."

"I'm going to hang up now."

"Ask! Him! Out! Ask! Him! Out!" Phichit cheers. Yuuri can't help but imagine him waving a hamster's arms around like a mini cheerleader.

"Good night, Phichit."

Yuuri hangs up, but Phichit's words linger in his head.

He's never been in this predicament with a patient before. Never had a patient he was genuinely attracted to. Patients were all just problems to be solved, each interaction a brand new chapter to add to the great big book of medicine that was Yuuri's entire career. But this is _Viktor,_ he tells himself. Viktor isn't just a patient file in all of Yuuri's recordings of medical notes. He isn't just a set of x-rays, nor just the name of a medical chart carefully curated by Yurio for Yuuri to reference in his followup. He was the bane of Yuuri's existence in a career long past, and, in Yuuri's opinion, is _still_ the most beautiful man Yuuri has ever seen grace the planet. And Yuuri is definitely, definitely attracted to him.

And now, Viktor is a patient in _Yuuri's_ ER, within 50 feet of him, and possibly attracted to him. No, Phichit is right--Viktor is _definitely_ attracted to him. _Mutually_ attracted to him. Yuuri could pinch himself to make sure he isn't dreaming, but genuinely fears waking up and being twelve years old again.

His mind darts back to Phichit's words.

\------------------------------

Yuuri pulls back the curtain of Viktor's room, and Viktor looks at him, startled as he quickly puts his phone away.

"Oh, Yuuri-- I mean Dr. Yuuri-- er, Dr. Katsuki--! I didn't even hear you coming!"

"Ah, I'm sorry!" Yuuri apologizes. "I hope I wasn't interrupting anything--"

"No, no," Viktor laughs, waving his hand dismissively. "I was just facetiming my dog."

Yuuri exhales, relieved. "Aww, what kind of dog do you have?" he asks, knowing full well that Viktor owns a giant, beautiful poodle named Makkachin, which Viktor then confirms.

"She's worried about me!" Viktor sighs in despair. "But my coach is taking care of her tonight, so she will be fine."

 _Coach,_ Yuuri remembers. _Right. Viktor Nikiforov, the famous figure skater._

"Did you need to tell me something, Doctor?"

Yuuri blinks. "Huh--oh, right, I uh--"

Yuuri is only in Viktor's room to subtly get his number, under the guise of an excuse that Viktor's number in the system had not been updated. Unnecessary work, it seemed like, but it spared Yuuri the guilt of directly copying the number _from_ Viktor's file, and it was a safe way to get to talk to Viktor without being flat-out rejected by him--or just flat-out rejecting hospital protocol. Then again, Yuuri could use the moment as an opportunity to make a _joke_ about using Viktor's number to ask him out, without directly asking him out. _And then Viktor would say yes anyway, because he likes you, he really likes you...! Okay Katsuki you're having rambling thoughts again._

"Y-Your phone number hasn't been updated in the system," he starts nervously, "and we just... wanted to confirm that it's... current." Yuuri winces, because he's pretty sure he sounds like he's lying.

Either Viktor is oblivious or sees right through him, because he says, "Oh! No problem. I can give it to you. It's-- you might want to write it down, yes?"

"Oh," Yuuri breathes, nervousness still alight in his voice. "Right."

He pulls out his pen and the paper from earlier, not noticing the moment Viktor's eyes light up.

"That is the cutest pen _ever._ Where did you get that?"

Yuuri freezes. Not moving an inch of his body, he shifts his gaze down to the pen in his right hand, cursing internally when he finds that it isn't the one he meant to grab. Instead, he sees...

_The custom-made Viktor and Makkachin chibi pen._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wherein yuuri makes all of the bad decisions!
> 
> featuring the revenge of yuuri's adorable viktor and makkachin pen. honestly, i wish they were real. i would buy all of them.
> 
> and wow, thanks to everyone who left kudos and comments on the last chapter! find me on [tumblr](http://katsudon-s.tumblr.com/) where i yell in my tags and sometimes post art and nothing is organized :^)


	5. Chapter 5

Yuuri stands there, his entire body frozen except for his right hand subtly trying to shift _The Pen_ out of Viktor's line of sight.

He makes nervous eye contact with Viktor, who's staring at him curiously.

"Can I see it?"

"No!" Yuuri says--or yelps, rather, because it makes Viktor jump and then Yuuri feel guilty. He exhales. "Okay, fine," he resigns, a gentler edge to his voice. He reluctantly reveals the pen to Viktor.

"This is so cute!" Viktor ogles, pointing out the the chibi character-- _of himself_ , which he doesn't seem to put together--and flecks of gold confetti dotted along the body of the pen. His fingers brush against the Makkachin charm dangling from its base. "Wow! That looks _just_ like _my_ dog--"

Yuuri clamps his fist shut for fear of Viktor scrutinizing the pen any harder. "Cute, huh?"

Viktor nods. "Where did you buy it? I'd love to have one for myself."

"Japan," Yuuri blurts out. He's immediately thankful for his quick thinking. "I don't believe they sell them here," he lies.

"That's too bad," Viktor sighs. "I guess I'll have to look next time I'm there."

 _Did he really not notice that this is him?!_ Yuuri thinks in disbelief, rolling the pen around in his clenched fist. _There's no way he's that thick._

"Where in Japan will you be?" Yuuri asks, diverting the topic.

"Tokyo," Viktor beams, "for the Winter Olympics." Yuuri stares at him in shock, but Viktor just laughs. "I'm guessing you are Japanese?"

Yuuri nods. "Born and raised! I had only come here to go to college and move back, but I wound up in medical school and now I'm here!" He gestures to his scrubs and then grandly to the whole of the hospital.

"You make it sound like it was easy," Viktor says with humorous concern. "Your parents must be proud of you."

Yuuri just smiles modestly. "They are, but they're always hounding me about coming back home."

Viktor leans back and chuckles. "Mine are the same way! I end up in Russia at least twice every year thanks to them!" Yuuri laughs at that, and Viktor turns to look at him. "When was the last time you went home, Yuuri?"

"God, it must've been..." Yuuri stares off pensively, tapping his chin with a finger. "I think after I finished my first degree. That must have been five years ago."

"Mm." Viktor pauses, looking thoughtful, and then says, "Come with me to Japan, Yuuri."

"What?!" Yuuri's face goes red and he starts stammering incoherently. "I-- you-- that wouldn't be-- what?!"

"Ha-ha," Viktor winks. "Just kidding." He smiles as he leans his head on his left hand, and Yuuri can't help but sense a mischievousness in his eyes.

"You're a real tease," Yuuri throws out casually, feigning a pout. "And I'm too gullible." It's half a joke, but it's mostly serious, considering how most of the night has gone between them.

Viktor just smirks. His expression is halfway between flirty and seductive and it makes Yuuri feel hot and bothered, but he's determined not to break and do something reckless.

"Anyway, Doctor. You wanted my number?"

Taken by surprise by the reminder, Yuuri adjusts the pen in his palm, now sweaty from his subconscious death grip on the pen. "Uh huh," he croaks.

_All right, we're back to business and then I'm out of here! This tension is too much for me to bear right now..._

"That's not fair," Viktor pouts.

Yuuri blinks and cocks his head to the side. "Huh?"

"It's not fair," Viktor repeats, shifting towards Yuuri and cupping his left hand under Yuuri's jawline, "that _you_ get to have my number, but I don't get to have _yours."_

 _"Huh?!"_ Yuuri asks again, his eyes wide. He feels his ears burning hot and his heart beating fast. _Where is this coming from?!_

"Yuu-riii," Viktor says, his tone almost accusatory, the syllables gliding lightly off his tongue. Yuuri feels a slight chill at the sound of Viktor using his first name. "I gave my number to the registrar when I got here. Shouldn't it already be updated in the system?"

"That's... sound reasoning to me..."

"So, what do _you_ need it for?"

"You're sharp," Yuuri teases, his body still tense and his breathing still careful. His cover may be blown, but he's still trying hard to keep his cool, to not break his resolve under Viktor's intimate touch.

"Not possibly as sharp as you are, _Doctor."_

Yuuri feels his breath hitch. _Crap, he's so hot!_

If Yuuri learned anything from HR about patients coming on to him, he's promptly forgotten all of those rules in this moment. _Don't respond to a patient's advances,_ they'd probably taught. _Don't delay filing an incident report. Don't learn your kinks from a patient._

Yuuri had already disobeyed at least three.

 _Don't do anything reckless, Katsuki,_ he chastises himself. _Come on. What would Phichit tell you to do right now?_

His internal Phichit's advice comes not long after. _"Just do him already, damn it!"_

Yuuri shakes his mind of _that_ thought. _Maybe if I just tell him straight up that I'm interested in him, that would make this a little less weird..._

"Viktor, I--"

 _"Dr. Katsuki,"_ says the clerk's voice through the hospital room's speaker. "The cardiologist you requested is on your line."

"Cardiologist? What cardiologist?!" Yuuri sputters as he pages back. He's careful not to free himself from Viktor's grip--which, he realizes, is actually quite addicting--but he still mashes the speaker's button in hard enough that it sticks for a second before he's able to get a response.

"--ologist is on the line that you requested for Pacemaker Guy in room 9."

 _Right._ Pacemaker Guy, the second patient of the night, whose pacemaker kept saying his heart stopped even though he was clearly alive. Instead of sending the guy home, Yuuri reassured him that a cardiologist would come in and look at it. Out of the kindness of his heart. And now, as repayment, Pacemaker Guy was _cockblocking_ him.

"Viktor, I need to take this call," Yuuri says regretfully. He caresses Viktor's arm as some sort of silent gesture to indicate he's also interested, but stops when he realizes he enjoys it a little dangerously too much.

This time, it's Viktor who pouts. "You don't get to call me a tease," he breathes, bringing Yuuri's face closer, "when you've been teasing me all night."

Unable to bear it any longer, Yuuri kisses him.

Yuuri isn't sure how long it lasted, but it's interrupted by the clerk again, impatiently reminding him to come answer the phone. When he pulls back, Viktor is wide-eyed and speechless and when he finally does talk, it comes out in sputtering, incoherent bursts.

And Yuuri isn't sure what to make of it because he hadn't given any thought to what he'd just done, he'd abandoned all reason and for once hadn't micromanaged his thoughts or his actions. He'd probably violated every rule in the book, but he really did _not_ want to be cockblocked by Pacemaker Guy.

The speaker crackles again. "Dr. Katsuki--"

"Coming!" Yuuri says as he hustles out of his room, keeping his eyes on Viktor while simultaneously trying to forget what just happened.

Minutes later, when Yuuri is far out of sight, Viktor brings a hand to his lips--and also realizes he's still blushing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> despite the pen situation being seemingly averted, yuuri's bad decision streak continues! (no, he doesn't get fired, thankfully ;D)
> 
> a huge thank you to everyone who's been supporting this little story! hope you enjoy all the twists and turns this one took~!
> 
> i also apologize for the delayed update!! i was unable to even brainstorm ideas due to some craziness going on in my IRL life. things are a bit tamer now, but of course as those issues clear up i have to start preparing for exams T___T regardless, i'll try my best to update sooner than later this time around! ^^;
> 
> as always, find me on tumblr [here](http://katsudon-s.tumblr.com/)!


End file.
